A military officer who stole almost £ 1m from the Ministry of Defense to pay for hair transplants, Turkey’s teeth and cosmetic surgery for a fake six package in a speech scam has been imprisoned today.
Former Dean Aaron Stelmach-Perdie, 34, ran the plan while working at Regent’s Park Barracks in Central London.
He angered the taxpayers of £ 911,677, from which he held £ 557,093 for himself.
Stelmach-Purdie, of Oldham in the Great Manchester, had a love for good life-undergoing a hair transplant and flying to Turkey for teeth-ventricular and abdominal implants.
Officers searched his home and found nine Christian Louboutin shoe pairs, a Louis Vuitton luggage set and three Patek Philippe watches that proved to be false.
Stelmach-Purdie ran the costs cheating with the help of five others who appeared in front of him in court yesterday and were convicted of money laundering and conspiracy to commit fraud.
He was told that he was facing prison for fraud and money laundering after being transferred to false allegations to an electronic administrator portal from November 2014 to January 2016.
He has been jailed for three years and four months today at the Southwark Crown Court.
Former Dean Aaron Stelmach-Purdie, 34, (depicted) ran a spending fraud while working at Regent’s Park Barracks in Central London
The court heard before how it helped with five other employees, former Sergeant Roger Clerice, 28, Allan O’Neil, 48, Lee Richards, 41 years old, Anthony Sharwood, 38, and Peter Wilson, 55.
Prosecutor Domonic Connolly told the court: “This case concerns a series of fraud conducted by many defense ministry officials in their administrative headquarters located as part of Regents Park in Central London.
“These defendants, who were all employed in the Regent’s Park camp, made a number of fantastic claims for expenses and allowances that were not entitled.
“As a result of these fraud, there was a loss of public funds totaling £ 911,677.66. These are public funds that were defined to defend the sphere and protect its armed services.
Prosecutors said that fraud focused on the use of Joint Administration (JPA) – an electronic administrative system used by the United Kingdom Armed Forces to pay staff salaries, including claims for expenses and benefits.
While he was responsible for managing claims for expenses and allowances, Stelmach-Perdie used his position to make fraudulent claims for his JPA account and the accounts of others, the court said.
He then used third -party bank accounts, including his mother and sister, to hide the proceeds from the fraud, the court heard.
The other defendants told the court that they were approached by Stelmach-Purdie or shortly after December 2014, when he claimed he had found a way to “make some money that manipulates JPA,” prosecutors said.
Rogeer Clerice (depicted), who was Stelmach-Purdie’s line director, received more than 7,500 £ for his role in the design
Stelmach-Purdie’s responsible line manager, who was a specialist, received £ 7,691 from fraud. He acknowledged guilty of money laundering.
Wilson, a former Lance sergeant who left the army in October 2015, continued to receive £ 230,400 in fraudulent claims made by Stelmach-Purdie for months until December 31, 2015.
Between June and December 2015, Wilson’s JPA account was used to make 28 fraudulent claims totaling £ 378,662.
Sharwood, a former Dean of the Royal Marines who left the Armed Forces in January this year, participated in eight fraudulent expenses between January 2015 and November 2015, totaling £ 28,935.
The defendant, from Bomsgrove to Worcestershire, acknowledged the conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering in March 2023.
Richards, a former Amesbury Lance Sergeant in Wiltshire, was sentenced by a jury of 103 tributaries between March 2015 and January 2016, totaling £ 434,825.
He kept about £ 160,000 out of this amount, the court heard.
Wilson, of Kidderminster in Worcestershire, said guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering in March 2023.
The total value of the fraud he was guilty is £ 385,432 which includes 28 fraudulent claims between June 2015 and January 2016.
A total of £ 378,662.26 passed his bank account, £ 149,781 of which he retained, the court said.
O’Neil, a former Sergeant from Droitwich in Worcestershire, has participated in three deliberate claims totaling £ 18,218 and has been guilty of money laundering.
Stelmach-Purdie, whom the court heard that he was involved in all 161 fraudulent claims, was rejected by the Armed Forces in January 2016 after being sentenced and sentenced to four charges of sexual activity with a child.
When an interview by police shortly after his fraudulent activity, Stelmach-Perdie said he was involved in the situation of bad mental health caused by sexual allegations against him.
Prosecutor Connolly told the judge: “When he himself (Stelmach-Perdie) began his work in the administration, he knew that people were claiming damages that were not entitled.
“He claimed that he felt that people were aware of these processes and would use it against him if he did not comply with their claims.
“It would allow claims for a percentage in return.
Military employees ran the expenditure fraud by Regent’s Regent’s Park barracks (depicted)
Stelmach-Purdie admitted guilty of seven counting of the conspiracy to commit fraud and a measurement of money laundering in August 2023.
Today, Stelmach-Purdie has been imprisoned for three years and four months, half of whom will serve in custody.
Richards received a two -year prison sentence for two years and will have to complete 200 hours of unpaid work. Richards’ friends and family joy in the public gallery as he walked free.
Wilson has also received a 24 -month prison sentence for two years and will have to complete 200 hours of unpaid work.
O’Neil received a 12 -month community order, which will require him to complete 100 hours of unpaid work.
Sharwood received 15 months in prison for two years and will have to complete 100 hours of unpaid work.
The employee received a 12 -month prison sentence for two years and should also complete 100 hours of unpaid work.
Judge Philip Bartle said: “161 fraudulent claims were made between November 2014 and January 2016.
“Mr. Stelmach-Perdie was central to committing these fraud and would not happen without his participation. Without him, none of the other defendants would have been involved in these offenses.
“He used his position to make fantastic claims. Made fraudulent claims on the JPA account and the accounts of others.
‘While a jpa [Joint Personnel Allowance] The user should never disclose the JPA password to others, the other defendants allowed Mr Stelmach-Purdie to use the passwords so that it can access JPA accounts.
“Mr Stelmach-Purdie used his friend Simon Lees’s bank account to allow Mr Stelmach-Perdie to hide the revenue of fraud. Mr Lees was trial with Mr Richards.
“As messages in Simon Lees show, Mr Stelmach-Perdie was willing to tell him to lie about the source of the money paid in his bank account and the brow hit him to continue to receive very large sums of money.”
When Stelmach-Purdie was interviewed by police, he claimed to be fighting with mental health problems when he was involved in fraud.
“Mr Stelmach-Purdie described that he had been in the army since he was sixteen and had traumatic tours of Afghanistan,” said Judge Bartle.
“He claimed to be involved in a bad mental state that caused judicial procedures for sexual claims against him.
“He had lied to his mother his sister and Mr Lees- all whose bank accounts were used- for where the money came from.”
The judge referred to text messages between Stelmach-Perdie and Wilson discussing fraud.
“The messages used a code referring to ‘flights’. So they referred to the “landing of flights” as a code for the money paid to the JPA account. “
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14614829/Military-clerk-stole-1m-MoD-pay-hair-transplants-Turkey-teeth-fake-six-pack-cosmetic-surgery-jailed-three-years.html
